Tanya Sweeney: I've started waking up earlier to begin my day on my own terms instead of letting my child or an algorithm dictate my mood

"I've surfaced from sleep in many weird, not-wonderful ways: waking up in my student accommodation in Maynooth to find I was not only in my boots, but sharing a single bed with two other fully grown people springs to mind."

"Until recently, the morning start was a little more predictable, if only very slightly more pleasant. At ungodly o'clock, the door would creak open, followed by a stern tap on the shoulder from a six-year-old before one word shattered the silence: "UP!""

Sleep was interrupted in several unusual and uncomfortable ways. One instance involved waking in student accommodation in Maynooth while still wearing boots and sharing a single bed with two other fully grown people. Later morning routines became only marginally more pleasant and somewhat more predictable. At an ungodly hour, a door creaked open and a six-year-old delivered a stern tap on the shoulder, then a single word, "UP!", shattered the silence. The contrast between chaotic, disorienting awakenings and abrupt child-driven mornings emphasizes the unpredictable and sometimes jarring nature of waking moments.

Read at Independent